Rewaa S. Jalal1 , Sameera O Bafeel1 and Ansary E. Moftah2*
Water is one of the most important environmental factors that regulate plant growth and development. The water deficit risticts the normal growth and development of plants, hence, several chemical materials have been used to reduce the harmful effects of water deficit. Salicylic acid (SA) is an important signal molecule modulating plant response to water stress. The current research was conducted to investigate the impact of salicylic acid (SA) at 0.5 mM on growth and biochemical parameters, and essential oil contents in Shara (Plectranthus tenuiflorus) under different levels of drought treatments. Dry weight, relative growth rate (RGR), photosynthetic pigments and oil content (%) were reduced at all stages of growth under severe water stress. Further, drought decreased the concentrations of thymol, carvacrol and terpens in plant leaves. On the contrary, SA at 0.05 mM spray reduced the harsh influences of water deficit resulted in improved growth and increased photosynthetic pigments as well as essential oil constituents. It seems that SA was able to enhance the tolerant ability of the plant to drought stress.
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